Machines for inserting spaced groups of tubular fasteners



s. GOOKIN Feb, 19 I957 MACHINES FOR INSERTING SPACED GROUPS OF TUBULAR FASTENERS Filed NOV. 10, 1953 4 Sheets-Sheet l In ven for jyluefier' LGoo/rin Feb. 19, 1957 s. GOOKIN 2,781,933

MACHINES FOR INSERTING SPACED GROUPS OF TUBULAR FASTENERS 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed NOV. I 10, 1955 In ven lor Sylvesterl. Goo/(in 5 hi5 1 FT? I Feb. 19, 1957 s. L. GOOKlN 2,781,933

MACHINES FOR INSERTING SPACED GROUPS OF TUBULAR FASTENERS Filed Nov. 10, 1955 4 Shets-Sheet 5 V A /ZZ M In venzol" Jyluesaer LGoo/r in w Z f mi Azzfi s. GOOKIN 2,781,933

MACHINES FOR INSERTING SPACED GROUPS OF TUBULAR FASTENERS Feb. 19, 1957 4 SheetsSheet 4 Filed NOV. l0, 1953 Inventor S'Zueszr L Goo/(Zn MAQHINES EUR INSERTING SPACE!) GROUPS OF TUBULAR FASTENERS Sylvester L. Gookin, Cohasset, Mass assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Fieniington, N. 3., a corporation of New Jersey 7 Application November 10, 19%, Serial No. 391,230

6 Claims. (Cl. 218-.5)

This invention relates to machines for inserting a row or rows of fasteners in sheet material. More particularly, the invention is concerned with installing groups of tubular fasteners such as eyelets which are to be spaced longitudinally of a tape or band. By way of example, the invention is herein illustrated and described as embodied in an eyeleting machine adapted to insert in a fabric strip successively spaced gangs of eyelets arranged two abreast. it will be appreciated that, in several novel and useful aspects, features of this invention are not limited to eyeleting nor to the feeding of fabric strip but may also be applied to other types of fastener applying machines, and to the feeding therein of other types of work pieces.

Fastener inserting machines have hitherto been devised for successively installing groups of tubular fasteners, two or more at a time, but so far as known they have not heretofore been successfully provided with means for automatically inserting in a work piece successive groups of two or more simultaneously installed fasteners having variably predetermined spacings between the successive groups. In certain types of work, for instance the making of mattress bands or of stay material for corsets and other body-supporting undergarments, it is required that parallel'rows of fasteners such as eyelets be inserted and that the fasteners be arranged in groups. In the mass production of such garments, for example, it is highly desirable that a long length of stay material be eyeleted, the fasteners being arranged side by side parallel to its edges and in equal but longitudinally spaced groups. The present normal practice is successively to insert in the Work two or three eyelets abreast and at one time until the required group has, by repeated operations, been installed and then to feed the work strip the distance required between groups before again repeatedly inserting two or three eyelets at a time. This practice i slow, laborious and hence expensive. It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a novel gang type fastening machine having improved means for simultaneously inserting a whole group of predeterminately spaced fasteners at one time and mechanism for predeterminately spacing from one another and in a row these groups of simultaneously installed fasteners.

To the attainment in a simple, economical and effective manner of the end just stated, and in accordance with a feature of the invention, the illustrative machine as herein shown comprises, in combination, gang punching means, gang fastener inserting means spaced therefrom, mechanism for simultaneously operating said punching and inserting means on adjacent portions of a work piece, and work feeding means intermittently actuated by said mechanism for predeterminately spacing the groups of fasteners installed by the gang inserting means in the prepunched work piece holes afforded by said gang punching means.

As heretofore commonly constructed fastener inserting machines have used piercing awls or punching tools which, after penetrating the work, have been caused to shift laterally to move the perforations into alinement with fastener setting tools thus feeding the Work step by step. While such organizations are ordinarily capable of producing good results, they tend to call for complex mechanical arrangements and, if the work piece is of flimsy or stretchable sheet material, will not consistently place perforations in accurate register with the setting tools and distortion of the work or imperfectly upset fasteners may result. It is accordingly another object of this invention to provide, in a gang fastener inserting machine, improved work feeding means arranged and adapted to feed a tape or strip by progressive engagement with a large percentage of its imperfor-ate width thereby moving successive groups of perforations therein from a perforating zone int-o accurate registry with the respective fastener inserting tools in an adjacent upsetting zone. In accord ance with this object a further feature of the invention resides in the combination of work feeding means, a gang of punching tools operative on the work at substantially one level, a gang of cooperative set-ting tools intermediate the feed means and said punching tools and adapted to upset fasteners below the punching level, means for supplying the fasteners one at a time to the respective setting tools, a presser plate for acting on one side of the work and a stripper plate for acting on the other side thereof, and means for jointly reciprocating the presser plate and stripper plate between the cooperative setting tool and in time relation thereto, the movements of said plates being equally above and below the punching level to avoid affecting the feed of the work as imparted by said work feeding means.

The above and other features of the invention, together with novel features of construction and arrangements of parts, including a convenient clutch contol device will now be described in more detail in connection with an illustrative machine in which the invention is embodied, and with reference to the accompanying drawings thereof, in which,

Fig. 1 is a view in front elevation of an eyeleting machine embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation, with portion broken away, of the machine shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view in side elevation, and largely in section, of portions of the machine shown in Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the operating instrumentalities at a later stage in their operation;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the delivery end of a raceway unit, a portion being broken away to show an endm-ost eyelet;

Fig. 6 is a View in front elevation including the clutch, and the clutch operating means shown in Fig. 1, the parts being in their positions of continuous operation; and

'Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a portion of tape as gang punched and gang eyeleted by the illustrative machine.

The illustrative fastener inserting machine is of the gang type, its general construction largely resembling that of the eyeleting machine disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 1,932,420, granted October 31, 1933 upon an application of E. S. Nokes but being modified in ways hereinafter to be described in detail to adapt the machine for the eyeleting of a tape or strip of fabric automatically fed therein. The specimen of work illustrated in Fig. 7 is a typical example of the production problems to which this invention is directed, a strip S bearing spaced groups of eyelets E arranged in rows.

The machine is provided with eight fastener inserting tools (Figs. 1 and 2), those designated 10, ll, 12 and 13 being respectively abreast of four similar tools, only one (14) of which may be seen in Fig. 1. A complemental gang of eight stationary clinching tools 18 each arranged to cooperate with one of the inserting tools is also provided. In conventional manner each inserting tool carries a spring-backed impaling spindle 26 adapted to deliver to a pilot projection 22 of each tool 18 one eyelet E at a time for insertion in the strip S. As seen in Fig. 2 the tools 18 are fixed in a block 24 mounted on a pair of parallel arms 26, the block being secured thereon by bolts 28 and the arms being adjustably attached to a main frame 30 of the machine by clamping bolts 32 extending through vertical slots therein.

The eight inserting tools are fixed in a block 34 carried by a vertically movable plunger 36, an upwardly extending stem formed on the block being secured in a socket in the plunger by a bolt 37 (Fig. 1). For reciprocating the plunger 36 between guides 38, 38 bolted to an overhanging portion of the frame 30, a horizontal operating shaft 40 is provided with a crank arm 42 carrying a wrist pin 44 connected to the plunger. A pulley 46 loosely mounted on the rear end of the shaft 46 is intended to be driven continuously by a belt (not shown). To establish suitable driving connection between the pulley and shaft, a clutch generally designated 48 is shown in Fig. 6 and hereinafter further referred to.

For presenting fasteners E as required to the impaling spindles a pair of confronting raceway units 5%, 50 (Fig. l) is mounted one on each side of the frame on horizontal supporting pivots 52. A rotary hopper 54 on each raceway is in communication with each of four generally parallel delivery channels or tracks 56 therein that are, re spectively, adapted to guide the eyelets one at a time to the raceway delivery ends. By means fully disclosed in said Nokes patent and not herein shown, a duplex cam mounted on the shaft is employed for oscillating the raceway units about their respective pivots 52 to move the delivery ends simultaneously toward and from each other. As shown in Fig. 5 an endmost eyelet E is yieldingly retained in each of the outer tracks 56, until their raceway unit 50 is retracted from the path of the spindles 20, by means of a spring-pressed finger 58 pivotally mounted on the unit. In a somewhat similar manner, differing only because of space limitations between adjacent tracks, the endmost eyelets in the respective inner tracks 56 are likewise yieldingly retained, a U-shaped member 60 mounted on each unit serving to support a pair of pivot fingers 62, 62, each having one end arranged to engage the barrel of the endmost eyelet and being acted on by a coil spring 64.

For gang punching the work piece S intermittently in order properly to prepare it for the insertion of groups of eyelets E, the machine is provided with eight punching tools (Figs. 2, 3 and 4), the four designated 70, 71, 72 and 73 being in line with, but spaced rearwardly from the inserting tools 10, 11, 12 and 13. The remaining four punching tools are, of course, arranged in a row and in side by side relation to the tools designated 70, 71, 72 and 73 to assure that the gang of holes to be simultaneously punched in the work will correspond exactly in spacing with the inserting tools. It will be understood that the holes provided by a gang of punching tools need not be in line if a different work piece to be operated upon calls for a different group pattern; but it will be obvious that any selected pattern or arrangement of the punching tools for a given job should correspond in number and arrangement to the gang of inserting tools then being used in the machine. It will further be understood that it is Within the scope of this invention to employ a gang of piercing awls in lieu of punching tools when the nature of the work so dictates. It is to be noted that when, as in the present example, a light weight fabric such as a cotton strip folded upon itself constitutes the stay material to be eyeleted, piercing would be apt to produce puekering in the strip and hence the gang punching tools are, respectively, provided with work-penetrating portions 78 (Fig. 3) of slightly smaller diameter than that of the eyelet barrels or the pilots 22 of the inserting tools. This difference in diameter, though necessitating special tape pressing and stripping parts to be described later, results in a strong fastener installation, the fibers surrounding each hole necessarily becoming compacted during upsetting, but not excessively so as might be the case if mere piercing were here attempted prior to fastener insertion.

The gang punching tools are respectively mounted for vertical movement in bores formed in the upper portion of a unitary block 80 (Figs. 2 and 3) adjustably secured by clamping bolts 81 (one only shown in Fig. 3) to the arms 26, the bolts respectively extending through slots formed in the block. The gang punches are yieldingly urged upward and above work-engaging level by compression springs 82 respectively mounted on the upper ends of the punching tools 70, 73, and two others corresponding thereto, the springs extending for endwise engagement with the upper surface of the block 80 and the lower surface of a depressible equalizing plate 84. The work penetrating portions 78 normally project into a recess portion or space between the upper and lower portions of the block 80 through which the tape S is to be fed. Enlarged heads 86 formed on the respective punching tools rest on the plate 84 and are thus normally maintained at the same level so that simultaneous punching or perforating of a work piece portion may be effected when the gang of punching tools is driven downward by engagement with their heads of a horizontally extending ram 88 (Fig. 2) projecting rearwardly from the block 34. The lower portion of the block 80 is provided with eight vertical bores for respectively receiving tubular, stationary dies 90 (Fig. 3) arranged and adapted to cooperate with the punching tool portions 78. The tops of the dies 90 and the side of the recess comprising the lower portion of the block 88 establish a substantially horizontal punching level over which the work piece S travels as will later be described. The end of the recess in the unitary block may serve as a straight edge gage or guide for the tape. A stationary U- shaped stripper 92 attached to the upper portion of the block 80 has holes in its smooth fiat portion for accommodating the punch portions 78 and is disposed in the recess, being arranged to confine successive portions of the work at the punching level.

Attention is invited to the fact that the level of upsetting in the machine, as established by the tools 18, is below that of the punching for reasons hereinafter to be explained. After leaving the punching zone successive work piece portions are received between a horizontal presser plate 94 (Figs. 2 and 3) and an adjacent horizotnal stripper plate 96 operative between the gangs of fastener inserting tools. These two perforated plates are joined for vertical movement in unison, their actuation as one presser member for alternately acting on the tape being effected in appropriate time relation by means new to be described. The plate 96 is fixedly mounted on the upper ends of four rods 98 vertically reciprocable, respectively, in bores formed in the block 24. The lower ends of the rods 98 are reduced in diameter to form shoulders and extend through holes in a horizontal plate 109, the ends being threaded to receive nuts for fixedly securing the plate against theshoulders. An arm 102 (Fig. 3) is secured by a pin 104 to a roekshaft 106 (Figs. 2 and 3) journaled in the arms 26. One end of the arm 102 is forked to straddle and engage the plate 1630 on its upper and lower surfaces. An arm 105 fixedly mounted on one end of the shaft 106 is formed with a cam surface 108 (Fig. 2) arranged to cooperate with a cam roll 110 carried by the ram 88. A tension spring 114, connected at its ends to the frame 30 and to the arm 105, tends to maintain the cam surface 108 in engagement with the roll 110. A collar 112 is fixed to one end of the roekshaft 106 to limit its endwise movement in one direction. From the above description it will be understood that each descent of the plunger 36 during a revolution of the shaft 40 effects operation of the gang punching means, gang fastener inserting means, and the presser and stripper plates 94, 96.

For intermittently feeding the tape S in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figs. 2 and 3, a feed roll is detachably mounted for rotation with a shaft 122 journaled in the forward ends of the arms 26. Step by step clockwise (as viewed in Figs. 2 and 3) feeding movement is imparted to the roll 121) by mechanism comprisng a ratchet wheel 124 (Fig. 2) fast on one end of the shaft 122, a lever 126 pivotally supported intermediate its ends on said shaft, a pawl 123 pivotally secured to the lower end of the lever 126 and biased for operating engagement with successive teeth of the ratchet wheel 124 by a leaf spring 1311 attached to the lever 126, and a reciprocable actuating link 132 pivotally connected to the upper end of the lever 126. in this instance the wheel 124 is provided with five equally spaced ratchet teeth and the repeated feeding throw given to the pawl 128 by the link 132 is substantially equal to the distance between consecutive teeth. The link 132 is connected at its other end to a bell crank lever 134 fulcrumed at 136 on the machine frame and carrying at its upper end a cam roll 138 cooperative with a cam 141i mounted on the operating shaft 40. The cam 140 accordingly acts positively through the linkage described to rotate the feed roll 120 in intermittent and equal steps, the cam 1413 and its roll 133 being yieldably maintained in cooperative relation by a tension spring 142 connecting the lever 134 with the frame 30. Consecutive portions of the tape S, after they have been gang punched and gang eyeleted, are progressively pulled toward the front of the machine by the intermittent rotation of knurled annular portions 144 (Fig. 1) of the roll 120 arranged to engage imperforate portions of the tape. The latter is held against slippage by means of an idler pressure roll 146 cooperating with the knurled portions 144. If other work pieces require more space between consecutive groups of installed fasteners, another roll 121 of suitably larger diameter is substituted. Conversely, for less space between consecutive groups of the simultaneously installed fasteners, another and suitably smaller roll 120 would be employed. For suitably adjusting the pinch or pressure of the roll 146 on the Work in any case its shaft extends through opposite slots 148 (Fig. 2) in a bracket secured to the arms 26. Springs 1511 extending endwise into the slots may adjustably be brought to bear on the shaft by means of screws 152. I

In order to prevent overtravel of the tape S, a friction device 154 is secured between the arms 26 and comprises an arcuate guide or channel 156 through which the imperforate tape is drawn from a source of supply such as a reel (not shown). The tape is emitted from the guide 156 to be further guided by the presser-stripper 94, 96 and external rims formed on the feed wheel 12%. A fiat work-engaging finger 158 is arranged in the straightened lower part of the channel 156. The lower end of the finger is fulcrumed in a bracket 160 affixed to the channel, and a spring 162 backed by an adjusting screw 164 mounted in the bracket is arranged to abut the finger 158. In this way the finger may be caused to exert more or less continual frictional drag on the moving tape. A chute 166 (Fig. 2) mounted on the channel is disposed beneath the gang punching dies 91) for collection of the punchings.

For controlling operation of the machine, i. e. for conveniently causing continuous rotation of the operating shaft 40 through repeated cycles or simply shifting to a condition in which the machine will perform only one or a few groups of gang punchings and a corresponding number of groups of gang fastener installations, suitable clutch control means about to the described is provided. The clutch mechanism 48 (Fig. 6) is of a well-known type and need be but briefly explained, an early one-revolution form thereof being illustrated in United States Letters Patent No. 784,653, granted March 14, 1905 on application of O. S. Beyer, and an improved so-called tworevolution form thereof being disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,182,021, granted December 5, 1939 on an application filed in my name. The shaft 41) rotates clockwise as viewed in Fig. 6. The driven member 170 (Figs. 1 and 6) of the clutch is fixed on the shaft 40 and carries a rocker comprising a head 172 and a stem (not here fully shown) that extends through the driving member, the flywheel 46. It will be understood that the latter may rotate Without driving the shaft 40 except when the member 1711 is connected to the flywheel. The rocker is provided with a cylindrical bearing in the driven member and its aforementioned stem, the key portion of the clutch, has a portion 174 of semicylindrical section extending through the flywheel and represented by a dotted line in Fi 6. The head 172 at one end of the stem is nested in an external sectoral recess in the driven member but a portion of this head projects sutficiently to be engaged by a starting and stopping lever 176 pivotally supported by a portion of the frame. A spring pressed plunger 173 in a socket in the driven member 170 is arranged to bear on the head 172 to turn the rocker in a clockwise direction to its driving position (illustrated in Fig. 6) when the lever 176 is retracted to the right to release the rocker. When the lever 176 is thus retracted but is urged counterclockwise, as by a return spring (Fig. 2) connecting its upper end with the machine frame, the lever 176 is effective to arrest rotation of the member 1'70 and to force the plunger 178 into its socket. In these conditions the driven member 170 is released from the flywheel because the semicylindrical portion 174 has been turned counterclockwise to clear engagement therewith.

Operating positions of the starting and stopping lever 176 are conveniently controlled by a hand lever 182 at the front of the machine. This lever is pivotally mounted on a pin 184 carried by an arm 186 which is afi'ixed by a pin to the front end of a horizontal rod 188 rotatably journaled in the frame 31). An upper end of the hand lever 182 is provided with a notch 1% arranged to latch with a stud 192 projecting from the guide 38. Fast on the rearward end of the rod 188 is an operating arm 194 arranged to engage and cooperate with a lower portion 196 of the lever 176. Clockwise movement of the arm 186 as viewed in Fig. 6 thus is effective against the influence of the spring 1811 to move the starting and stopping lever 176 clockwise and release the rocker head 172, and such release is effected for continuous operation of the machine by bodily shifting the control handle 132 so that the stud 192 is fully seated in the notch as shown in Fig. 6. If the hand lever 182 be moved to its phantom position as indicated in that figure, a contact point 198 just beneath the recess 1% of the lever 182 engaging the stud 192 will be just above the plane containing the axes of the stud and the pin 184. Accordingly, as soon as the operators hand releases the hand lever 182 it will automatically be turned clockwise about the pin 184 and the spring 18% will become effective to move the lever 176 counterclockwise to the position shown in Fig. 1 to stop the machine. The position of the hand lever indicated by phantom lines is thus especially useful in making a trial run on a new job, for example in checking the quality of the fastener installations or the spacing of the groups installed, an operator being able promptly to stop operation if performance is unsatisfactory or to shift to continuous drive if the tape thus eyeleted is to be produced in quantity.

To review operation of the machine briefly, it will be assumed that eyelets E of slightly larger diameter than that of the punch portions 78 are in the hoppers 54, and that a feed wheel 121} of appropriate radius is secured on the shaft 122 to correspond exactly with the adjusted spacing of the punch block 80 from the upsetting dies 13. Each step in the feeding of the tape must equal the distance required between the axis of any one punching die 29 and the axis of its corresponding upsetting tool. When ready for continuous cyclical operation the hand lever 182 is moved from its position shown in Fig. 1 to that indicated by full lines in Fig. 6, that is, counterclockwise is seen in Figs. 1 and 6. Gang punching and gang fastener inserting occur on adjacent portions of the tape sub- 7 stantially simultaneously and at or near the bottom of the descent of the plunger 34 with the ram 88. The feeding movement of the punched portion of the tape to aline its holes with corresponding inserting tool axes occurs harmonically during the interval in which the eight punching tools and 8 cooperative upsetting tools are disengaged from the tape. Hence it is essential that the tape be entirely free of these gangs, which is accomplished by the strippers 92 and 96, to allow a large part of each machine cycle for the feeding function. Preferably, and as the illustrative machine is constructed, a part of the feed occurs during the upstroke of the plunger 34 and a part during its downstroke, the shape of the cam 140 being such that, when the plunger is at the top of its stroke, the actuating link 132 moving the ratchet wheel 124 has traveled about one-half of its advancing or work feeding stroke. The arrangement advantageously enables the cooperating pressure roll 146 and knurled annular portions 144 progressively to pull successive portions of the tape S with increasing and then decreasing tension, any overfeeding of the work or slack therein being avoided by the suitably adjusted frictional drag of the finger 158.

An important consideration is that nothing shall change the length of each successive feeding step imparted by the feed wheel 120 once the machine has been correctly adjusted for a given job. The prepunching of undersized holes, as by the portions 78, to obtain strong fastener installations in fabric (and possibly other material) has demonstrated that it is virtually impossible to obtain satisfactory upsetting results when individual fasteners or a plurality thereof are themselves used to force the perforated tape over the pilots 22. The presser 94 is accordingly required to force the punched tape down over the eight pilots before the eight impaled fasteners (received from the raceways 50, 50) are presented for engagement there with by the axial descent of the spindles 20. The downward movement of the presser 94 therefore moves the punched portion of the tape downward below the punching level. Next, insertion of the fasteners, followed by clinching, occurs as the gang inserting tools descend for cooperation With the pilots 22 respectively. To proceed with feeding movement the gang eyeleted portion of the tape must then be raised at least sufficiently to clear it from the pilots and this is effected by upward movement of the stripper plate 96. The alternate pressing of the plates 9-1, 96 on the opposite sides of the perforated tape is effected in the necessary time relation with operation of the spindles and the aforementioned upsetting tools, and while the tape is not being fed, by the interaction of the cam 108 and the cam roll 110 as operated by the plunger 34 of the punching-upsetting mechanism. Thus the arm 102 is turned to lower the presser stripper device 94, 96 by means of the rods 98 and the plate 100 in preparation for eyeleting as indicated in Fig. 4 and again turned to raise it right after eyeleting as indicated in Fig. 3. By reason of the fact that such vertical movement of the presser stripper device 94, 96 is arranged reciprocably to move successive portions of the tape S equally above and below the punching lever, and always to substantially the same extent, no force is thereby applied to the tape or its fasteners that can interfere with the feed length which is accurately obtained only from the feed mechanism comprising the roll 120.

It will be apparent that the described invention affords compact and economical mechanism whereby a fastener inserting machine of the type herein illustrated or other suitable gang type may be easily adapted for rapidly inserting spaced groups of tubular fasteners with little or no attention on the part of an operator.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a machine for successively inserting groups of tubular fasteners in spaced relation in a tape, tape feeding means, a gang of punching tools operative on successive portions of the tape at one level, a gang of cooperative setting tools between the tape feeding means and said punching tools and adapted simultaneously to upset a plurality of fasteners at a different level in a plurality of holes afforded by said gang punching tools,

a pair of members arranged to act one on each side of successive portions of the tape in the operating zone of said setting tools, means for operating both of said gangs of tools substantially simultaneously, and mechanism for operating said members alternately above and below the punching level to press successive perforated portions of tape into registry with the setting tools and thereafter to strip said successive portions with their simultaneously inserted fasteners therefrom.

2. In a machine for successively inserting groups of tubular fasteners in spaced relation in a tape, tape feeding means, a gang of punching tools operative on successive portions of the tape in one level, a gang of stationary setting tools between the tape feeding means and said punching tools, said setting tools being provided respectively with pilots arranged in a pattern identical with that of said punching tools but at a different level, a gang of fastener inserting tools respectively cooperative with said setting tools, means for cyclically operating said gangs of punching and inserting tools during non-operation of said feeding means to insert, respectively, a plurality of fasteners in the plurality of holes punched in a prior cycle of operations, a reciprocable presser means adapted to receive successive portions of the tape and act alternately on opposite sides thereof, said presser means being operable in time relation to said inserting tools and said tape feeding means, whereby successive perforated portions of tape are pressed to receive said pilots before the fasteners are inserted and then pressed free of said pilots to strip them and the fasteners therefrom.-

3. A machine as set forth in claim 2 further characterized in that said presser means is operable by said cyclically operating means.

4. A machine as set forth in claim 3 further characterized in that said tape feed-ing means is also actuable by said cyclically operating means.

5. A machine as set forth in claim 3, said presser means being movable to the same extent above and below the punching level to avoid affecting the feed movements imparted by said tape feeding means.

6. In a machine for installing spaced groups of tubular fasteners .in a row, gang punching means operative at one level, gang fastener applying means spaced therefrom and comprising setting tools provided with pilots operative at a level different from the punching level, work feeding means intermittently operable to shift the holes formed in a work piece portion by said punching means for register with said pilot, presser means for receiving the work adjacent to said pilots and mounted for reciprocating movement heightwise thereof to the same extent above and below the punching level, and mechanism for actuating the last mentioned means just prior to and just after an operation of said fastener applying means.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,932,420 Nokes Oct. 31, 1933 2,350,436 Whistler et al. June 6, 1944 2,352,211 Kratzmaier June 27, 1944 2,357,889 Gookin Sept. 12, 1944 2,534,360 Loverch Dec. 19, 1950 

